Beurteilung der Eignung der NPEMFE-Methode (Natural Pulsed Electromagnetic Field of Earth) mit dem "Cereskop" in Rutschungen und in Locker- und Festgesteinen mit Spannungsänderungen im Mittel- und Hochgebirge

Spannungsumlagerungen in Mineralen und Gesteinen induzieren in geologisch aktiven Bereichen mikromechanische und seismische Prozesse, wodurch eine schwache natürliche elektromagnetische Strahlung im Niederfrequenzbereich emittiert wird. Die elektromagnetischen Emissionen von nichtleitenden Mineralen sind auf dielektrische Polarisation durch mehrere physikalische Effekte zurückzuführen. Eine gerichtete mechanische Spannung führt zu einer ebenso gerichteten elektromagnetischen Emission. Die Quellen der elektromagnetischen Emissionen sind bekannt, jedoch können sie noch nicht eindeutig den verschiedenen Prozessen in der Natur zugeordnet werden, weshalb im Folgenden von einem seismo-elektromagnetischen Phänomen (SEM) gesprochen wird. Mit der neuentwickelten NPEMFE-Methode (Natural Pulsed Electromagnetic Field of Earth) können die elektromagnetischen Impulse ohne Bodenkontakt registriert werden. Bereiche der Erdkruste mit Spannungsumlagerungen (z.B. tektonisch aktive Störungen, potenzielle Hangrutschungen, Erdfälle, Bergsenkungen, Firstschläge) können als Anomalie erkannt und abgegrenzt werden. Basierend auf dem heutigen Kenntnisstand dieser Prozesse wurden Hangrutschungen und Locker- und Festgesteine, in denen Spannungsumlagerungen stattfinden, mit einem neuentwickelten Messgerät, dem "Cereskop", im Mittelgebirgsraum (Rheinland-Pfalz, Deutschland) und im alpinen Raum (Vorarlberg, Österreich, und Fürstentum Liechtenstein) erkundet und die gewonnenen Messergebnisse mit klassischen Verfahren aus Ingenieurgeologie, Geotechnik und Geophysik in Bezug gesetzt. Unter Feldbedingungen zeigte sich großenteils eine gute Übereinstimmung zwischen den mit dem "Cereskop" erkundeten Anomalien und den mit den konventionellen Verfahren erkundeten Spannungszonen. Auf Grundlage der bisherigen Kenntnis und unter Einbeziehung von Mehrdeutigkeiten werden die Messergebnisse analysiert und kritisch beurteilt.

A Multilevel Model with Time Series Components for the Analysis of Tribal Art Prices

In the present work we perform an econometric analysis of the Tribal art market. To this aim, we use a unique and original database that includes information on Tribal art market auctions worldwide from 1998 to 2011. In Literature, art prices are modelled through the hedonic regression model, a classic fixed-effect model. The main drawback of the hedonic approach is the large number of parameters, since, in general, art data include many categorical variables. In this work, we propose a multilevel model for the analysis of Tribal art prices that takes into account the influence of time on artwork prices. In fact, it is natural to assume that time exerts an influence over the price dynamics in various ways. Nevertheless, since the set of objects change at every auction date, we do not have repeated measurements of the same items over time. Hence, the dataset does not constitute a proper panel; rather, it has a two-level structure in that items, level-1 units, are grouped in time points, level-2 units. The main theoretical contribution is the extension of classical multilevel models to cope with the case described above. In particular, we introduce a model with time dependent random effects at the second level. We propose a novel specification of the model, derive the maximum likelihood estimators and implement them through the E-M algorithm. We test the finite sample properties of the estimators and the validity of the own-written R-code by means of a simulation study. Finally, we show that the new model improves considerably the fit of the Tribal art data with respect to both the hedonic regression model and the classic multilevel model.

The Role of Multiple Social Categorisation in Promoting the Inclusion in the Human Group of Outgroup Members

Valutazione dei disturbi cognitivi nei pazienti sottoposti a Rivascolarizzazione Carotidea (Endoarterectomia vs Stenting) mediante dosaggio di marker di danno neuronale, Mini Mental State Examination e Risonanza Magnetica

Scopo del nostro studio è quello di valutare i disturbi cognitivi in relazione al tasso di microembolia cerebrale in due gruppi di pazienti trattati per lesione carotidea asintomatica con endoarterectomia (CEA) o stenting (CAS). Comparando le due metodiche mediante l’utilizzo di risonanza magnetica in diffusione (DW-MRI), neuromarkers (NSE e S100β) e test neuropsicometrici. MATERIALE E METODI: 60 pazienti sono stati sottoposti a rivascolarizzazione carotidea (CEA n=32 e CAS n=28). Sono stati tutti valutati con DW-MRI e Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) test nel preoperatorio, a 24 ore, a 6 ed a 12 mesi dall’intervento. In tutti sono stati dosati i livelli sierici di NSE e S100β mediante 5 prelievi seriati nel tempo, quello basale nel preoperatorio, l’ultimo a 24 ore. L’ananlisi statistica è stata effettuata con test t di Student per confronti multipli per valori continui e con test χ2 quadro e Fisher per le variabili categoriche. Significatività P <0,05. RISULTATI: Non vi è stato alcun decesso. Un paziente del gruppo CAS ha presentato un ictus ischemico. In 6 pazienti CAS ed in 1 paziente CEA si sono osservate nuove lesioni subcliniche alla RMN-DWI post-operatoria (21,4% vs 3% p=0,03). Nel gruppo CAS le nuove lesioni presenti alla RMN sono risultate significativamente associate ad un declino del punteggio del MMSE (p=0,001). L’analisi dei livelli di NSE e S100β ha mostrato un significativo aumento a 24 ore nei pazienti CAS (P = .02). A 12 mesi i pazienti che avevano presentato nuove lesioni ischemiche nel post-operatorio hanno mostrato minor punteggio al MMSE, non statisticamente significativo. CONCLUSIONI: I neuromarkers in combinazione con MMSE e RMN-DWI possono essere utilizzati nella valutazione del declino cognitivo correlato a lesioni silenti nell’immediato postoperatorio di rivascolarizzazione carotidea. Quest’ultime dovrebbero essere valutate quindi non solo rispetto al tasso di mortalità e ictus, ma anche rispetto al tasso di microembolia.

Analisi critica di modelli previsionali per le frane in Emilia Romagna

Questa tesi di dottorato è inserita nell’ambito della convenzione tra ARPA_SIMC (che è l’Ente finanziatore), l’Agenzia Regionale di Protezione Civile ed il Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra e Geologico - Ambientali dell’Ateneo di Bologna. L’obiettivo principale è la determinazione di possibili soglie pluviometriche di innesco per i fenomeni franosi in Emilia Romagna che possano essere utilizzate come strumento di supporto previsionale in sala operativa di Protezione Civile. In un contesto geologico così complesso, un approccio empirico tradizionale non è sufficiente per discriminare in modo univoco tra eventi meteo innescanti e non, ed in generale la distribuzione dei dati appare troppo dispersa per poter tracciare una soglia statisticamente significativa. È stato quindi deciso di applicare il rigoroso approccio statistico Bayesiano, innovativo poiché calcola la probabilità di frana dato un certo evento di pioggia (P(A|B)) , considerando non solo le precipitazioni innescanti frane (quindi la probabilità condizionata di avere un certo evento di precipitazione data l’occorrenza di frana, P(B|A)), ma anche le precipitazioni non innescanti (quindi la probabilità a priori di un evento di pioggia, P(A)). L’approccio Bayesiano è stato applicato all’intervallo temporale compreso tra il 1939 ed il 2009. Le isolinee di probabilità ottenute minimizzano i falsi allarmi e sono facilmente implementabili in un sistema di allertamento regionale, ma possono presentare limiti previsionali per fenomeni non rappresentati nel dataset storico o che avvengono in condizioni anomale. Ne sono esempio le frane superficiali con evoluzione in debris flows, estremamente rare negli ultimi 70 anni, ma con frequenza recentemente in aumento. Si è cercato di affrontare questo problema testando la variabilità previsionale di alcuni modelli fisicamente basati appositamente sviluppati a questo scopo, tra cui X – SLIP (Montrasio et al., 1998), SHALSTAB (SHALlow STABility model, Montgomery & Dietrich, 1994), Iverson (2000), TRIGRS 1.0 (Baum et al., 2002), TRIGRS 2.0 (Baum et al., 2008).

Differenze nella prestazione tecnico-tattica tra diverse categorie di atleti nel tennistavolo di alto livello

Nell’ambito della ricerca scientifica nel campo dello sport, la Performance Analysis si sta ritagliando un crescente spazio di interesse. Per Performance Analysis si intende l’analisi della prestazione agonistica sia dal punto di vista biomeccanico che dal punto di vista dell’analisi notazionale. In questa tesi è stata analizzata la prestazione agonistica nel tennistavolo attraverso lo strumento dell’analisi notazionale, partendo dallo studio degli indicatori di prestazione più importanti dal punto di vista tecnico-tattico e dalla loro selezione attraverso uno studio sull’attendibilità nella raccolta dati. L’attenzione è stata posta quindi su un aspetto tecnico originale, il collegamento spostamenti e colpi, ricordando che una buona tecnica di spostamento permette di muoversi rapidamente nella direzione della pallina per effettuare il colpo migliore. Infine, l’obbiettivo principale della tesi è stato quello di confrontare le tre categorie di atleti selezionate: alto livello mondiale maschile (M), alto livello junior europeo (J) ed alto livello mondiale femminile (F). La maggior parte delle azioni cominciano con un servizio corto al centro del tavolo, proseguono con una risposta in push (M) o in flik di rovescio (J). Il colpo che segue è principalmente il top spin di dritto dopo un passo pivot o un top di rovescio senza spostamento. Gli alteti M e J contrattaccano maggiormente con top c. top di dritto e le atlete F prediligono colpi meno spregiudicati, bloccando di rovescio e proseguendo con drive di rovescio. Attraverso lo studio della prestazione di atleti di categorie e generi diversi è possibile migliorare le scelte strategiche prima e durante gli incontri. Le analisi statistiche multivariate (modelli log-lineari) hanno permesso di validare con metodo scientifico sia le procedure già utilizzate in letteratura che quelle innovative messe a punto per la prima volta in occasione di questo studio.

Analisi climatica ad alta risoluzione delle precipitazioni sul nord Italia (1961-2005)

L’obiettivo di questo lavoro di tesi è di ottenere un’analisi climatica giornaliera ad alta risoluzione della precipitazione sul territorio del nord Italia realizzata con tecniche di controllo statistico, di analisi e di strumenti di descrizione dei risultati presentati nella recente letteratura. A tal fine, sono stati utilizzati i dati dell’Archivio ARCIS. In seguito alle fasi di controllo qualità, omogeneità e sincronicità i dati sono stati utilizzati per realizzare un’analisi giornaliera su grigliato regolare a 10 km di risoluzione utile alla rappresentazione della variabilità spazio-temporale della precipitazione sul Nord Italia per il periodo 1961-2005. I risultati di tale analisi mettono in evidenza dei valori medi di precipitazione annuale abbastanza intensi sulla parte centrale dell’arco Alpino, con massimi (oltre 2000 mm) sull’estremità orientale e sull’Appennino Ligure. Valori minimi (500 – 600 mm) sono osservati lungo le aree prospicienti il fiume Po, in Val d’Aosta ed in Alto Adige. La corrispondente analisi del trend temporale indica la presenza di lievi cali statisticamente significativi solo in aree limitate del territorio. In coerenza con questi risultati, la variazione nel tempo della precipitazione annuale mediata su tutto il territorio mette in evidenza un’intensa variabilità decennale, ma solo una lieve flessione lineare sull’intero periodo. Il numero annuo di giorni piovosi ed il 90° percentile della precipitazione giornaliera presentano invece trend lineari un po’ più pronunciati. In particolare, sul periodo considerato si nota un calo del numero di giorni piovosi su gran parte del territorio e solo su alcune aree del territorio un aumento dell’intensità del 90° percentile, sia a scala annuale che stagionale. Nell’ultima parte di questo lavoro è stato realizzato uno studio della relazione fra la forzante climatica e l’evoluzione della morfologia dell’Appennino Emiliano-Romagnolo. I risultati mostrano che a parità di quota, di pendenza e di litologia, la franosità è influenzata dalle precipitazioni.

Land use management in mountainous areas: combining ground-based and EO (Earth Observation) data to investigate the shallow landsliding susceptibility in the Duron valley (Trento, Italy).

Throughout the alpine domain, shallow landslides represent a serious geologic hazard, often causing severe damages to infrastructures, private properties, natural resources and in the most catastrophic events, threatening human lives. Landslides are a major factor of landscape evolution in mountainous and hilly regions and represent a critical issue for mountainous land management, since they cause loss of pastoral lands. In several alpine contexts, shallow landsliding distribution is strictly connected to the presence and condition of vegetation on the slopes. With the aid of high-resolution satellite images, it's possible to divide automatically the mountainous territory in land cover classes, which contribute with different magnitude to the stability of the slopes. The aim of this research is to combine EO (Earth Observation) land cover maps with ground-based measurements of the land cover properties. In order to achieve this goal, a new procedure has been developed to automatically detect grass mantle degradation patterns from satellite images. Moreover, innovative surveying techniques and instruments are tested to measure in situ the shear strength of grass mantle and the geomechanical and geotechnical properties of these alpine soils. Shallow landsliding distribution is assessed with the aid of physically based models, which use the EO-based map to distribute the resistance parameters across the landscape.

Charakteristika und zeitliche Merkmale des Blickrichtungsnacheffekts

In der vorliegenden Arbeit werden verschiedene, insbesondere zeitliche Aspekte des Blickrichtungsnacheffekts (gaze aftereffect) untersucht. Dieser Effekt besagt, dass nach längerer Betrachtung von Bildern, die Personen mit abgewandtem Blick zeigen, die Wahrnehmung von Blickrichtungen in Richtung des adaptierten Blickes verschoben ist. Betrachter halten dann zugewandte Blicke fälschlicherweise für in die Gegenrichtung verschoben, und Blicke in die Adaptationsblickrichtung fälschlicherweise für geradeaus, d.h. sie fühlen sich angeschaut, obwohl sie es nicht werden. In dieser Dissertation wird der Blickrichtungsnacheffekt mit vier psychophysischen Experimenten untersucht, in denen die Probanden einfache kategoriale Urteile über die Blickrichtung der Testbilder abzugeben hatten.rnrnDas erste Experiment untersucht die Induktion des Blickrichtungsnacheffekts. Es wird gezeigt, dass keine separate Adaptationsphase für die Induktion des Nacheffekts notwendig ist. Auch die alleinige, relativ kurze Darbietung des zur Adaptation verwendeten Reizes (TopUp-Display) vor der Präsentation eines Testbildes führt im Laufe wiederholter experimenteller Darbietungen zu einer Verschiebung der allgemeinen Blickrichtungs-Tuningkurve, sowie zu ihrer Verbreiterung. In einem zweiten Experiment wird nachgewiesen, dass die Ausprägung des Blickrichtungsnacheffekts von der jeweiligen Darbietungszeit des Adaptationsreizes abhängt. Zwar ist der Nacheffekt umso stärker, je länger das TopUp-Display gezeigt wird. Aber auch bei sehr kurzen Darbietungszeiten von einer Sekunde kommt der Effekt bereits zustande, hier zeigt sich eine lokal begrenztere Wirkung. Die Auswertung des zeitlichen Verlaufs ergibt, dass sich der Effekt rasch vollständig aufbaut und bereits innerhalb der ersten Darbietungen entsteht. Das dritte Experiment zeigt, dass dem Nacheffekt sowohl kurzfristige Einwirkungen der direkt vor dem Testbild erfolgten Reizung zugrunde liegen, als auch langfristige Memory-Effekte, die über die im Laufe des Experiments gegebenen Wiederholungen akkumuliert werden. Bei Blickwinkeln von 5° halten sich kurzfristige und langfristige Einwirkungen in etwa die Waage. Bei Blickwinkeln von 10° aber sind nur knapp 20% kurzfristig, und etwa 80% langfristige Einwirkungen für den Effekt verantwortlich. In einem vierten Experiment wird die zeitliche Rückbildung des Effekts untersucht und gezeigt, dass sich der Blickrichtungsnacheffekt im Kontrast zu seiner schnellen Entstehung langsam, nämlich innerhalb mehrerer Minuten zurückbildet.rnrnDie Diskussion der Ergebnisse kommt zu dem Schluss, dass die hier gefundene zeitliche Dynamik des Blickrichtungsnacheffekts Adaptationsprozesse auf höheren Schichten der visuellen Informationsverarbeitung als die zugrunde liegenden Mechanismen nahe legt.

Quality assessment of a landslide inventory map and its application to land‐use planning. A case study in the Northern Apennines (Emilia‐Romagna region, Italy)

Landslide hazard and risk are growing as a consequence of climate change and demographic pressure. Land‐use planning represents a powerful tool to manage this socio‐economic problem and build sustainable and landslide resilient communities. Landslide inventory maps are a cornerstone of land‐use planning and, consequently, their quality assessment represents a burning issue. This work aimed to define the quality parameters of a landslide inventory and assess its spatial and temporal accuracy with regard to its possible applications to land‐use planning. In this sense, I proceeded according to a two‐steps approach. An overall assessment of the accuracy of data geographic positioning was performed on four case study sites located in the Italian Northern Apennines. The quantification of the overall spatial and temporal accuracy, instead, focused on the Dorgola Valley (Province of Reggio Emilia). The assessment of spatial accuracy involved a comparison between remotely sensed and field survey data, as well as an innovative fuzzylike analysis of a multi‐temporal landslide inventory map. Conversely, long‐ and short‐term landslide temporal persistence was appraised over a period of 60 years with the aid of 18 remotely sensed image sets. These results were eventually compared with the current Territorial Plan for Provincial Coordination (PTCP) of the Province of Reggio Emilia. The outcome of this work suggested that geomorphologically detected and mapped landslides are a significant approximation of a more complex reality. In order to convey to the end‐users this intrinsic uncertainty, a new form of cartographic representation is needed. In this sense, a fuzzy raster landslide map may be an option. With regard to land‐use planning, landslide inventory maps, if appropriately updated, confirmed to be essential decision‐support tools. This research, however, proved that their spatial and temporal uncertainty discourages any direct use as zoning maps, especially when zoning itself is associated to statutory or advisory regulations.

Lateral spreading and associated slope processes in fractured rock slabs

Landslides of the lateral spreading type, involving brittle geological units overlying ductile terrains, are a common occurrence in the sandstone and limestone plateaux of the northern Apennines of Italy. These instability phenomena can become particularly risky, when historical towns and cultural heritage sites built on the top of them are endangered. Neverthless, the mechanisms controlling the developing of related instabilities, i.e. toppling and rock falls, at the edges of rock plateaux are not fully understood yet. In addition, the groundwater flow path developing at the contact between the more permeable units, i.e. the jointed rock slab, and the relatively impermeable clay-rich units have not been already studied in details, even if they may play a role in this kind of instability processes, acting as eventual predisposing and/or triggering factors. Field survey, Terrestrial Laser Scanner and Close Range Photogrammetry techniques, laboratory tests on the involved materials, hydrogeological monitoring and modelling, displacements evaluation and stability analysis through continuum and discontinuum numerical codes have been performed on the San Leo case study, with the aim to bring further insights for the understanding and the assessment of the slope processes taking place in this geological context. The current research permitted to relate the aquifer behaviour of the rocky slab to slope instability processes. The aquifer hosted in the fractured slab leads to the development of perennial and ephemeral springs at the contact between the two units. The related piping erosion phenomena, together with slope processes in the clay-shales led to the progressive undermining of the slab. The cliff becomes progressively unstable due to undermining and undergoes large-scale landslides due to fall or topple.

Sustainable development in Darjeeling Hills, India : ecological and socio-economic aspects for small-scale farmers with supportive observations from Kanagawa, Japan

Organic farming means a holistic application of agricultural land-use, hence, this study aimed to assess ecological and socio-economic aspects that show benefits of the strategy and achievements of organic farming in comparison to conventional farming in Darjeeling District, State of West Bengal, India and Kanagawa Prefecture/Kanto in Central Japan. The objective of this study has been empirically analysed on aspects of crop diversity, yield, income and sales prices in the two study regions, where 50 households each, i.e. in total 100 households were interviewed at farm-level. Therefore, the small sample size does not necessarily reflect the broad-scale of the use and benefit of organic farming in both regions. The problems faced in mountainous regions in terms of agriculture and livelihoods for small-scale farmers, which are most affected and dependant on their immediate environment, such as low yields, income and illegal felling leading to soil erosion and landslides, are analyzed. Furthermore, factors such as climate, soils, vegetation and relief equally play an important role for these farmers, in terms of land-use. To supplement and improve the income of farmers, local NGOs have introduced organic farming and high value organic cash crops such as ginger, tea, orange and cardamom and small income generating means (floriculture, apiary etc.). For non-certified and certified organic products the volume is given for India, while for Japan only certified organic production figures are given, as there are several definitions for organic in Japan. Hence, prior to the implementation of organic laws and standards, even reduced chemical input was sold as non-certified organic. Furthermore, the distribution and certification system of both countries are explained in detail, including interviews with distribution companies and cooperatives. Supportive observations from Kanagawa Prefecture and the Kanto region are helpful and practical suggestions for organic farmers in Darjeeling District. Most of these are simple and applicable soil management measures, natural insect repelling applications and describe the direct marketing system practiced in Japan. The former two include compost, intercropping, Effective Microorganisms (EM), clover, rice husk charcoal and wood vinegar. More supportive observations have been made at organic and biodynamic tea estates in Darjeeling District, which use citronella, neem, marigold, leguminous and soil binding plants for soil management and natural insect control. Due to the close ties between farmers and consumers in Japan, certification is often neither necessary nor wanted by the producers. They have built a confidence relationship with their customers; thus, such measures are simply not required. Another option is group certification, instead of the expensive individual certification. The former aims at lower costs for farmers who have formed a cooperative or a farmers' group. Consumer awareness for organic goods is another crucial aspect to help improve the situation of organic farmers. Awareness is slightly more advanced in Kanto than in Darjeeling District, as it is improved due to the close (sales) ties between farmers and consumers in Kanto. Interviews conducted with several such cooperatives and companies underline the positive system of TEIKEI. The introduction of organic farming in the study regions has shown positive effects for those involved, even though it still in its beginning stages in Darjeeling District. This study was only partly able to assess the benefits of organic agriculture at its present level for Darjeeling District, while more positively for the organic farmers of Kanto. The organic farming practice needs further improvement, encouragement and monitoring for the Darjeeling District farmers by locals, consumers, NGOs and politicians. The supportive observations from Kanagawa Prefecture and the Kanto region are a small step in this direction, showing how, simple soil improvements and thus, yield and income increases, as well as direct sales options can enhance the livelihood of organic farmers without destroying their environment and natural resources.

Numerical and semi-analytical models of sliding masses: application to the 1783 Scilla tsunamigenic landslide

The Scilla rock avalanche occurred on 6 February 1783 along the coast of the Calabria region (southern Italy), close to the Messina Strait. It was triggered by a mainshock of the Terremoto delle Calabrie seismic sequence, and it induced a tsunami wave responsible for more than 1500 casualties along the neighboring Marina Grande beach. The main goal of this work is the application of semi-analtycal and numerical models to simulate this event. The first one is a MATLAB code expressly created for this work that solves the equations of motion for sliding particles on a two-dimensional surface through a fourth-order Runge-Kutta method. The second one is a code developed by the Tsunami Research Team of the Department of Physics and Astronomy (DIFA) of the Bologna University that describes a slide as a chain of blocks able to interact while sliding down over a slope and adopts a Lagrangian point of view. A wide description of landslide phenomena and in particular of landslides induced by earthquakes and with tsunamigenic potential is proposed in the first part of the work. Subsequently, the physical and mathematical background is presented; in particular, a detailed study on derivatives discratization is provided. Later on, a description of the dynamics of a point-mass sliding on a surface is proposed together with several applications of numerical and analytical models over ideal topographies. In the last part, the dynamics of points sliding on a surface and interacting with each other is proposed. Similarly, different application on an ideal topography are shown. Finally, the applications on the 1783 Scilla event are shown and discussed.

The Effects of Airbags and Seatbelts on Occupant Injury in Longitudinal Barrier Crashes

Introduction: Longitudinal barriers, such as guardrails, are designed to prevent a vehicle that leaves the roadway from impacting a more dangerous object while minimizing the risk of injury to the vehicle occupants. Current full-scale test procedures for these devices do not consider the effect of occupant restraints such as seatbelts and airbags. The purpose of this study was to determine the extent to which restraints are used or deployed in longitudinal barrier collisions and their subsequent effect on occupant injury. Methods: Binary logistic regression models were generated to predict occupant injury risk using data from the National Automotive Sampling System / Crashworthiness Data System from 1997 through 2007. Results: In tow-away longitudinal barrier crashes, airbag deployment rates were 70% for airbag-equipped vehicles. Compared with unbelted occupants without an airbag available, seat belt restrained occupants with an airbag available had a dramatically decreased risk of receiving a serious (MAIS 3+) injury (odds-ratio (OR)=0.03; 95% CI: 0.004- 0.24). A similar decrease was observed among those restrained by seat belts, but without an airbag available (OR=0.03; 95% CI: 0.001- 0.79). No significant differences in risk of serious injuries were observed between unbelted occupants with an airbag available compared with unbelted occupants without an airbag available (OR=0.53; 95% CI=0.10-2.68). Impact on Industry: This study refutes the perception in the roadside safety community that airbags rarely deploy in frontal barrier crashes, and suggests that current longitudinal barrier occupant risk criteria may over-estimate injury potential for restrained occupants involved in a longitudinal barrier crash.

Identification, discrimination, and selective adaptation of simultaneous musical intervals

Four experiments investigated perception of major and minor thirds whose component tones were sounded simultaneously. Effects akin to categorical perception of speech sounds were found. In the first experiment, musicians demonstrated relatively sharp category boundaries in identification and peaks near the boundary in discrimination tasks of an interval continuum where the bottom note was always an F and the top note varied from A to A flat in seven equal logarithmic steps. Nonmusicians showed these effects only to a small extent. The musicians showed higher than predicted discrimination performance overall, and reaction time increases at category boundaries. In the second experiment, musicians failed to consistently identify or discriminate thirds which varied in absolute pitch, but retained the proper interval ratio. In the last two experiments, using selective adaptation, consistent shifts were found in both identification and discrimination, similar to those found in speech experiments. Manipulations of adapting and test showed that the mechanism underlying the effect appears to be centrally mediated and confined to a frequency-specific level. A multistage model of interval perception, where the first stages deal only with specific pitches may account for the results.